Building A Resilient Organization

The 9/11 attack, the SARS epidemic, Katrina and scores of other natural and man‐made disruptions have increased companies’ awareness of the need for active risk management. Governments in the West also have realized that more than 85% of the infrastructure in their countries is owned and/or operated by the private sector. At the very least this means that governments need to better understand how resilient private sector enterprises are, and how these organizations manage risk. This article is based on ideas described in my recent book The Resilient Enterprise that outlines some of the ways in which companies can and do prepare themselves for the inevitable large disruptions. Most of the lessons are relevant to government, non‐profit, and any other organization. A Fire in the Desert